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BANCROFT 
LIBRARY 


THE  LIBRARY 

OF 

THE  UNIVERSITY 

OF  CALIFORNIA 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 

in  2007  with  funding  from 

IVIicrosoft  Corporation 


http://www.archive.org/details/circularfronigeneOOunitrich 


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SHOWING 


btain  |;ile  to  :3uWic  lands 


BY  PURCHASE,  BY  LOCATION  WITH  WARRANTS  OR  AGRICULTURAL  COLLEGE 
SCRIP,  BY  PRE-EMPTION  AND  HOMESTEAD. 


ISSUED   AUGUST   33,  1870. 


1870. 


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FROM  THE 


GENERAL  LAND  OFFICE, 


SHOWING 


THE  MANNER  OF  PROCEEDING 


TO  OBTAIN  TITLE  TO  PUBLIC  LANDS 


BY  PURCHASE,  BY  LOCATION  WITH  WARRANTS  OR  AGRICULTURAL 
COLLEGE  SCRIP,  BY  PRE-EMPTION  AND  HOMESTEAD. 


ISSUED  AUaUST  33,  1870. 


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WASHINGTON : 

GOVERNMENT     PRINTING     OFFICE. 

1870. 


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DEPARTMENT   OF  THE   INTERIOli, 

General  Land  Office, 
Washington,  D.  C,  August  23,  1870. 
The  following  is  communicated  in  reference  to  the  manner  of  acquir- 
ing title  to  the  public  lands  under  different  laws  of  Congress : 

There  are  two  classes  of  public  lands,  the  one  class  at  $1  25  per  acre, 
which  is  designated  as  minimum,  and  the  other  at  $2  50  per  acre,  or 
double  minimum. 

Title  may  be  acquired  by  purchase  at  public  sale,  or  by  ordinary 
"  private  entry,"  and  in  virtue  of  the  Pre-emption  and  Homestead  laws. 
1,  At  public  sale  where  lands  are  "  offered "  at  public  auction  to  the 
highest  bidder,  either  pursuant  to  Proclamation  by  the  President,  or 
pubhc  notice  given  in  accordance  with  directions  from  the  General  Land 
Office. 


BY    "PRIVATE    ENTRY 


OR    LOCATION. 


2.  The  lands  of  this  class  liable  to  disposal  are  those  which  have  been 
offered  at  public  sale,  and  thereafter  remain  unsold,  and  which  have  not 
l)een  subsequently  reserved  or  otherwise  withdrawn  from  market.  In 
this  class  of  offered  and  unreserved  public  lands  the  following  steps  may 
be  taken  to  acquire  title : 

CASH   PURCHASES. 

3.  The  applicant  nnist  present  a  written  application  to  the  Register 
for  the  District  in  which  the  land  desired  is  situated,  describing  the 
tract  he  wishes  to  purchase,  giving  its  area.  Thereupon  the  Register, 
if  the  tract  is  vacant,  will  so  certify  to  tlie  Receiver,  stating  the  price, 
and  the  applicant  must  then  pay  the  amount  of  the  purchase  money. 

The  Receiver  will  then  issue  to  the  purchaser  a  duplicate  receipt,  and 
at  the  close  of  the  month  the  Register  and  Receiver  will  make  returns 
of  the  sale  to  the  General  Land  Office  from  whence,  when  the  proceed- 
ings are  found  regular,  a  patent  or  complete  title  will  ])e  issued ;  and  on 
surrender  of  the  duplicate  receipt  such  patent  will  be  delivered,  at  the 
option  of  the  patentee,  either  by  the  Commissioner  at  Washington,  or  by 
the  Register  at  the  District  Land  Office. 


;t 


MANNER    OF    PROCEEDING 


LOCATIONS    WITH   WARRANTS. 

4.  Application  must  be  made  as  in  cash  cases,  but  must  be  accompa- 
nied by  a  warrant  duly  assigned  as  the  consideration  for  the  land ;  yet 
where  the  tract  is  $2  50  per  acre,  the  party,  in  addition  to  tlie  surren- 
dered warrant,  must  pay  in  cash  $1  25  per  acre,  as  the  warrant  is  in 
satisfaction  of  only  so  many  acres  at  $1  25  per  acre  as  are  contained  in 
the  tract  located. 

A  duplicate  certificate  of  location  wall  then  bo  furnished  tlie  i^arty,  to 
be  held  until  the  patent  is  delivered,  as  in  cases  of  cash  sales. 

The  following  fees  are  chargeable  by  the  land  officers,  and  the  several 
amounts  must  he  paid  at  the  thne  of  location  : 

For  a    40-acre  warrant,  50  cents  each  to  the  Register  and  Receiver — Total,  |1  00 

For  a    60-acre  waiTant,  75  cents'     "         "             "  "               "       $1 50 

For  an  80-acre  warrant,  $1 00           "         "             "  "              "       $2  00 

For  a  120-acie  warrant,  $1 50           "         "            "  "              "       $3  00 

For  a  160-acre  Avarrant,  %2  00       .    "         "            "  "               "       $4  00 

AGRICULTURAL    COLLEGE    SCRIP. 

5.  This  scrip  may  be  used — 

First.  In  the  location  of  lands  at  ^'■private  entry ^''  but  when  so  used 
is  only  applicable  to  lands  not  mineral  which  may  be  subject  to  private 
entry  at  $1  25  per  acre,  yet  is  restricted  to  a  technical  '•''  quarter  section;'''' 
that  is,  lands  embraced  by  the  quarter  section  lines  indicated  on  the 
official  plats  of  sm'vey,  or  it  may  be  located  on  a  part  of  a  "  quarter 
section,"  where  such  part  is  taken  as  in  full  for  a  quarter,  but  it  cannot 
be  applied  to  different  subdivisions  to  make  an  area  equivalent  to  a  quar- 
ter section.  The  manner  of  proceeding  to  acquire  title  with  this  class  of 
paper  is  the  same  as  in  cash  and  warrant  cases,  the  fees  to  be  paid  being 
the  same  as  on  warrants.  The  location  of  this  scrip  at  private  entry  is 
restricted  to  three  sections  in  each  township  of  land. 

Second.  In  payment  of  Pre-emption  claims  ui  the  same  manner  and 
under  tlie  same  rules  and  regulations  as  govern  the  apphcation  to  Pre- 
emptions of  military  land  warrants  ;  this  too  without  regard  to  the  limit- 
ation as  to  the  quantity  located  in  a  township  or  in  any  one  State. 

PRE-EMPTIONS    ADMISSIBLE   TO  THE    EXTENT    OF    ONE     QUARTER     SECTION,    OR 
ONE  HUNDRED  AND  SIXTY  ACRES. 

6.  These  may  be  made  under  the  general  Pre-emption  laws  of  4th 
September,  1841,  U.  S.  Statutes,  vol.  5,  page  455,  and  3d  March,  1843, 
vol.  5,  page  619,  as  extended  by  Act  of  June  2d,  1862,  vol.  12,  page  413, 
upon  "  offered"  and  "unoffered"  lands  and  upon  any  of  the  unsurveyed 
lands  belonging  to  the  United  States  to  which  the  Indian  title  is  extin- 


TO    OBTAIN    TITLE    TO    PUBLIC    LANDS. 


guished,  although  in  the  case  of  unsurveyed  lands  no  definite  proceedings 
can  be  had  as  to  the  completion  of  the  title,  until  after  the  surveys  shall 
have  been  extended  and  are  officially  returned  to  the  District  Land  Office. 

7.  The  Act  of  3d  March,  1853,  U.  S.  Statutes,  vol.  10,  page  244,  ex- 
tends the  Pre-emption  for  one-quarter,  or  160  acres,  at  $2  50  per  acre  to 
every  "  alternate  "  United  States  or  reserved  section  along  the  line  of 
railroads. 

8.  The  Act  of  27th  March,  1854,  vol.  10,  page  269,  chap.  XXV, 
protects  tlie  right  of  settlers  on  sections  along  the  hno  of  railroads  where 
settlement  existed  prior  to  withdrawal,  and  in  such  cases  allows  the  tract 
to  be  taken  by  Pre-emptors  at  $1  25  per  acre.  Copies  of  these  laws, 
marked  A,  B,  C,  and  D,  will  be  found  herewith. 

9.  Where  the  tract  is  ^''offered''''  land  the  party  must  file  with  the 
District  Land  Office  his  Declaratory  Statement  as  to  the  fact  of  his  set- 
tlement within  thirty  days  from  the  date  of  said  settlement,  and  within 
one  year  from  that  date  must  appear  before  the  Register  and  Receiver 
and  make  proof  of  his  actual  residence  on,  and  cultivation  of,  the  tract, 
and  secure  the  same  by  paying  cash^  or  by  filing  warrant  or  agricultural 
college  scrip  duly  assigned  to  the  Pre-emptor. 

10.  Where  the  tract  has  been  surveyed  and  not  offered  at  public  sale, 
the  claimant  must  file  his  Declaratory  Statement  within  three  months 
from  date  of  settlement,  and  make  proof  and  payment  within  eighteen 
months  after  the  expiration  of  the  three  months  allowed  for  filing  his 
Declaratory  Notice ;  or  in  other  words  within  twenty-one  months  from 
date  of  settlement. 

11.  Should  the  settler  in  either  of  the  aforesaid  cases  die  before  estab- 
lishing his  claim  within  the  period  limited  by  law,  the  title  may  be  per- 
fected by  the  executor,  administrator,  or  one  of  the  heirs,  by  making  the 
jffiquisite  proof  of  settlement  and  paying  for  the  land ;  the  entry  to  be 

made  in  the  name  of  "the  heirs"  of  the  deceased  settler,  and  the  patent 
will  be  issued  accordingly. 

12.  Where  settlements  are  made  on  unsurveyed  lands  settlers  are 
required,  within  three  months  after  date  of  receipt  at  the  District  Land 
Office,  of  the  approved  plat  of  the  township  embracing  their  claims,  to  file 
their  Declaratory  Statement  with  the  Register  of  the  proper  land  office, 
and  thereafter  to  make  proof  and  payment  for  the  tract  within  eighteen 
months  from  the  expiration  of  said  three  months. 

Where  settlei's  claim  Pre-emption  rights  under  the  aforesaid  special 
act  of  March  27,  1854,  U.  S.  Statutes,  vol.  10,  page  269,  they  are  now 
required  to  file  Declaratory  Statements,  and  make  proof  and  payment  in 
like  manner  as  other  Pre-emptors. 

The  act  of  March  3,  1843,  prohibits  a  second  fihng  of  a  Declaratory 


MANNER    OF    PROCEEDING 


Statement  by  any  Pre-emtor  qualified  at  the  date  of  his  fii'st  fihng  where 
said  filing  has  been  in  all  respects  legal.  Where  the  first  filing,  however, 
is  illegal  from  any  cause,  he  has  the  right  to  make  a  second  and  legal  filing. 

LAWS  EXTENDING  THE    HOMESTEAD  PKIVILEGE. 

13.  The  original  Homestead  Act  of  May  20,  1862,  gives  to  every 
citizen,  and  to  those  who  had  declared  their  intentions  to  become  such, 
the  right  to  a  homestead  on  surveyed  lands.  This  is  conceded  to  the 
extent  of  one  quarter  section,  or  160  acres  at  $1  25  per  acre,  or  80  acres 
of  double  minimum  in  any  organized  district  embracing  surveyed  public 
lands. 

14.  To  obtain  Homesteads  the  party  must,  in  connection  with  his  appli- 
cation, make  an  affidavit  before  the  Register  or  Receiver  that  he  is  over 
tlie  age  of  twenty-one,  or  the  head  of  a  family ;  that  he  is  a  citizen  of  the 
United  States,  or  has  declared  liis  intention  to  become  such,  and  that 
the  entry  is  made  for  his  exclusive  use  and  benefit  and  for  actual  settle- 
ment and  cultivation. 

15.  Where  the  applicant  has  made  actual  settlement  on  the  land  he 
desires  to  enter,  but  is  prevented  by  reason  of  bodily  infirmity,  distance, 
or  other  good  cause,  from  personal  attendance  at  the  District  Land  Office, 
the  affidavit  may  be  made  before  the  clerk  of  the  court  for  the  county 
within  which  the  land  is  situated. 

16.  The  amendatory  Act  of  21st  March,  1864,  U.  S.  Statutes,  vol.  13, 
page  35,  relaxes  the  requirements  of  personal  attendance  at  the  District 
Office  to  persons  in  the  military  or  naval  service,  lohere  the  party^s  family, 
or  some  member,  is  residing  on  the  land  that  it  is  desired  to  enter,  and 
upon  which  a  bona  fide  improvement  and  cultivation  had  been  made. 
In  such  cases  the  said  act  of  1864  allows  the  beneficiary  to  make  the 
affidavit  before  the  officer  commanding  in  the  branch  of  service  in  whicl^ 
he  may  be  engaged,  and  the  same  may  be  filed,  by  the  wife  or  other 
representative  of  the  absentee,  with  the  Register,  together  with  the  Home- 
stead  Application. 

His  claim  in  that  case  will  become  effective  from  the  date  of  filiue:, 
provided  the  required  fee  and  commissions  accompany  the  same;  but 
immediately  upon  his  discharge  he  must  enter  upon  the  land  and  make 
it  his  bona  fide  home,  as  required  by  the  original  act  of  20th  May,  1862. 
The  25th  section  of  the  Act  15th  of  July,  1 870,  so  far  modifies  the  original 
Homestead  Act  as  to  allow  officers,  soldiers,  and  sailors  who  have  served  in 
the  army  or  navy  of  the  United  States  for  ninety  days,  and  remained 
loyal  to  the  government,  to  enter  160  acres  instead  of  80  acres  of  double 
minimum  lands.  In  all  other  respects  the  requirements  of  the  original 
and  amendatory  acts  remain  in  force,  actual  settlement  and  cultivation 


TO  OBTAIN  TITLE  TO  PUBLIC  LANDS. 


being  in  no  case  dispensed  with.  Special  affidavits  are  required  in  sucli 
cases.  Congress  has  also  enacted  that  any  alien  of  the  age  of  21  years 
and  npward  who  has  entered  or  shall  enlist  in  the  armies  of  the  United 
States,  and  be  honorably  discharged  therefrom,  shall  not  l)e  required  to 
make  any  declaration  of  intention  to  become  a  citizen  of  the  United  States, 
and  may  upon  his  petition  and  on  proof  of  honorable  military  service  be 
admitted  to  full  citizenship,  after  not  less  than  one  year's  residence  in 
the  United  States. 

17.  For  Homestead  entries  on  surveyed  lands  in  Michigan,  Wisconsin, 
Iowa,  Missouri,  Minnesota,  Kansas,  Nebraska,  Dakota,  Alabama, 
Mississippi,  Louisiana,  Arkansas,  and  Florida,  fees  are  to  be  paid  ac- 
cording to  the  following  table: 


Acres. 

Price  pek 
Acre. 

Commissions. 

Fees. 

Total  Fees  and 
Commissions. 

I 

Payable  when 
entry  is  made. 

Payable  when 
certificate  issues. 

Payable  when 
entry  is  made. 

160 

80 
40 

80 
40 

$1  25 
1  25 

1  25 

2  50 
2  50 

$4  00 
2  00 

1  00 
4  00 

2  00 

$4  00 
2  00 

1  00 
4  00 

2  00 

$10  00 

5  00 

5  00 

10  00 

5  00 

$18  00 

9  00 

7  00 

18  00 

9  00 

Note. — Where  entries  are  m.ade  on  $2  50  lands  by  officers,  soldiers,  and  sailors,  under  the 
act  of  15th  July,  1870,  double  the  amount  of  the  above  rates  must  of  course  be  paid ;  that  is, 
for  160  acres  of  $2  50,  $8  00  at  date  of  entry,  and  $8  00  upon  proving  up. 

.These  rates  will  also  apply  to  Ohio,  Indiana,  and  Illinois,  if  any  vacant 
tracts  can  be  found  liable  to  Homestead  in  those  three  States,  wlierc  but 
very  few  isolated  tracts  of  public  land  remain  undisposed  of. 

18.  In  the  Paclfic  and  o^/ier  political  divisions,  viz:  On  surveyed 
lands  in  California,  Nevada,  Oregon,  Colorado,  New  Mexico,  and 
Washington,  and  in  Arizona,  Idaho,  Utah,  Wyoming,  and  Montana, 
the  commissions  and  fees  are  to  be  paid  according  to  the  following  table : 


< 

wg 

Commissions. 

Fees. 

Total  Fees  and 
Commissions. 

Payable  when 
entry  is  made. 

Payable  when 
certificate  issues. 

Payable  when 
entry  is  made. 

160 
80 
40 
80 
40 

$1  25 
1  25 

1  25 

2  50 
2  50 

$6  00 
3  00 
1  50 
6  00 
3  00 

$6  00 
3  00 
1  50 
6  00 
3  00 

$10  00 

5  00 

5  00 

10  00 

5  OO 

$22  00 

11  00 

8  00 

22  00 

11  00 

The  note  to  the  table  under  the  17th  head  applies  also  to  this  table  of  rates." 


MANNER    OF    PROCEEDING 


19.  By  the  Act  21st  June,  1866,  U.  S.  Statutes,  vol.  14,  page  66,  the 
pubhc  lands  of  Alabama,  Mississippi,  Louisiana,  Aekansas,  and  Florida 
are  subject  to  disposal  only  under  the  provisions  of  the  Homestead  laws. 

20.  Upon  payment  of  the  fee  and  commissions  in  accordance  with  the 
table  under  the  ITth  head,  the  lleceiver  will  issue  his  receipt  therefor 
and  furnish  a  duplicate  to  the  claimant. 

The  matter  will  then  be  entered  on  their  records  and  reported  to  the 
(jeneral  Land  Office. 

21.  An  inceptive  right  is  vested  in  the  settler  by  such  proceedings, 
and  upon  faithful  observance  of  the  law  in  regard  to  settlement  and  culti- 
vation for  the  continuous  term  of  five  years,  and  at  the  expiral^on  of  that 
time,  or  within  two  years  thereafter,  upon  proper  proof  to  the  satisfaction 
of  the  Land  Officers,  and  payment  to  the  Receiver,  the  Register  will  issue 
his  certificate,  and  make  proper  returns  to  this  office  as  the  basis  of  a 
patent  or  complete  title  for  the  Homestead. 

Note. — The  law  is  specific  in  requiring  final  proof  to  be  made  within  two  years  after  tlie 
expiration  of  the  five  jears. 

In  making  final  proof,  it  is  indispensible,  under  the  statute,  that  the 
Homestead  party,  shall  appear  in  person  at  the  District  Land  Office,  and 
there  make  the  affidavit  required  of  him  by  law  in  support  of  liis  claim. 
Where  from  physical  disability,  distance,  or  other  good  cause,  the  v)it7iesses 
of  said  party  cannot  attend  in  person  at  the  District  Office,  their  testi- 
mony in  support  of  the  claim  may  be  taken  where  they  reside,  before  an 
officer  authorized  by  law  to  administer  oaths. 

Their  testimony  must  state  satisfactorily  the  reason  of  their  inability 
to  attend  at  the  District  Office;  and  the  credibility  and  responsibility' of 
the  witnessess  must  be  certified  by  the  officiating  magistrate,  whose 
official  character  must  be  authenticated  under  seal. 

The  corroborating  testimony  thus  prepared  must  be  deposited  with  the 
Register  and  Receiver  and  filed  with  the  affidavit  of  the  Homestead 
party,  and  the  decision  of  the  Register  and  Receiver  endorsed  thereon  as 
preliminary  to  the  transmission  of  the  same  to  the  General  Land  Office. 

22.  Where  a  Homestead  settler  dies  before  the  consummation  of  his 
claim,  the  widow,  or  in  case  of  her  death  the  heirs,  may  continue  the  set- 
tlement and  cultivation,  and  obtain  title  upon  requisite  proof  at  the  proper 
time.  If  the  wddow  proves  up  the  title  passes  to  her  ;  if  she  dies  before 
proving  up  and  the  heirs  make  the  proof,  the  title  will  vest  in  them. 

Where  both  parents  die  leaving  infant  heirs,  the  Homestead  may  be 
sold  for  cash  for  the  benefit  of  such  heirs,  and  the  purchaser  will  receive 
title  from  the  United  States. 

23.  The  sale  of  a  Homestead  claim  by  the  settler  to  another  party 
before  completion  of  title  is  not  recognized  by  this  office,  and  not  only 


TO  OBTAIN  TITLE  TO  PUBLIC  LANDS. 


vests  no  title  or  equities  in  the  purchaser,  but  would  \)Q  priirta  facie  evi- 
dence of  abandonment,  and  might  give  cause  for  cancellation  of  the 
claim. 

A  party  may  relinquish  his  claim,  but  only  to  the  Government ;  and 
in  such  cases  should  surrender  his  duplicate  receipt,  with  a  relinquish- 
ment endorsed  thereon,  or  if  the  duphcate  has  been  lost,  that  fact  should 
be  stated  in  the  relinquishment,  duly  signed  and  acknowledged. 

Where  application  is  made  for  the  cancellation  of  a  Homestead  entry 
on  the  ground  of  abandonment,  the  party  must  file  his  affidavit  with  tlie 
District  Land  Officers,  setting  forth  the  facts  on  wliich  his  allegations  are 
founded,  describing  the  tract  and  giving  the  name  of  the  settler.  Upon 
this  the  officers  will  set  apart  a  day  for  hearing,  giving  all  the  parties  in 
interest  due  notice  of  the  time  and  place  of  trial. 

After  the  trial  the  land  officers  will  transmit  the  testimony,  with  their 
joint  report,  for  the  action  of  this  office. 

The  expenses  incident  to  such  contest  must  be  defrayed  by  the  con- 
testant, and  no  entry  of  the  land  can  be  made  until  the  district  officers 
have  received  notice  from  this  offi'^.e  of  the  cancellation  of  the  entry 
covering  the  same ;  nor  does  an  informant  obtain  any  privileges  thereby. 
Such  person  must,  if  he  desires  the  land,  by  proper  diligence  ascertain 
when  notice  of  cancellation  is  received  by  Register  and  Receiver,  and 
then  make  formal  written  application  for  the  tract ;  the  land,  after  recep- 
tion by  said  officers  of  notice  of  cancellation,  being  always  open  to  the 
first  legal  applicant^  unless  otherwise  withdrawn  from  entry  for  any 
purpose. 

24.  As  the  law  allows  but  one  Homestead  privilege,  a  settler  relin- 
quishing or  abandoning  his  claim  cannot  thereafter  make  a  second  entry. 
But  in  case  of  the  illegality  of  his  entry  he  may  make  a  second  claim. 

Where  an  individual  has  made  settlement  on  a  sm'veyed  tract  and  filed 
his  Pre-emption  declaration  therefor,  he  may  change  his  filing  into  Home- 
stead, yet  such  change  is  inadmissable  where  an  adverse  right  has  inter- 
vened, but  in  such  cases  the  settler  has  the  privilege  of  perfecting  his 
title  under  the  Pre-emption  laws. 

25.  K  the  Homestead  settler  does  not  wish  to  remain  five  years  on  his 
tract,  the  law  permits  Jiim  to  pay  for  it  with  cash  or  warrants,  upon 
making  proof  of  settlement  and  cultivation  for  a  period  not  Jess  than  six 
months  from  the  date  of  entry  to  the  time  of  payment. 

This  proof  of  actual  settlement  and  cultivation  must  be  the  affidavit  of 
the  party  made  before  the  district  officers,  corroborated  by  the  testimony 
of  two  credible  witnesses. 

26.  There  is  another  class  of  Homesteads  designated  as  "  adjoining 
farm  Homesteads."     In  these  cases  the  law  allows  an  applicant  owning 

2 


10  MANNER    OF    PROCEEDING 

and  residing  on  an  original  farm,  to  enter  other  land  lying  contiguous 
thereto,  wliich  shall  not,  with  such  farm,  exceed  in  the  aggregate  160 
acres.  Thus,  for  example,  a  party  owning  or  occupying  80  acres,  may 
enter  80  additional  of  $1  25,  or  40  acres  of  $2  50  land.  Or  suppose  the 
apphcant  to  own  40  acres,  then  he  may  enter  120  acres  at  $1  25,  or  40 
at  $1  25  with  40  at  $2  50,  if  both  classes  of  land  should  be  found  con- 
tiguous to  his  original  farm. 

In  entries  of  "adjoining  farms"  the  settler  must  describe,  in  his  affi- 
davit, the  tract  he  owns  and  is  settled  upon  as  his  original  farm.  Actual 
residence  on  the  tract  entered  as  an  adjoining  farm  is  not  required,  but 
bona  fide  improvement  and  cultivation  of  it  must  be  shown  for  the  period 
required  by  the  statute. 

27.  The  Homestead  and  Pre-emption  privilege  is  conceded  to  Indians 
who  have  voluntarily  dissolved  all  connection  with  their  tribes  and  no 
longer  share  in  the  annuities,  or  in  exemptions,  or  in  privileges  secured 
to  them  by  Acts  of  Congress  or  treaty  stipulations.  Special  forms  of  af- 
fidavit with  corroborative  testimony  are  required  in  these  cases,  forms  of 
which  are  attached — Nos.  10  and  11. 

28.  Lands  obtained  under  the  Homestead  laws  are  exempted  from 
liability  for  del)t8  contracted  prior  to  the  issuing  of  patent  therefor. 

Copies  of  the  Homestead  laws  are  hereto  annexed,  marked  E,  F,  and 
G,  as  also  forms  of  affidavits  and  applications,  numbered  from  one  to 
twelve,  required  upon  initiation  of  claims  under  the  Pre-emption  and 
Homestead  laws. 

registers'  and  receivers'  returns. 

29.  Within  three  days  from  the  close  of  each  month  the  District  Land 
Officers  are  required  to  make  out  and  transmit  to  the  General  Office  a 
statement  of  the  business  of  their  respective  offices  for  the  preceding 
month. 

These  reports  are  in  form  of  abstracts  of  declarations  of  settlements 
filed,  abstracts  of  lands  sold,  abstracts  of  Homesteads  entered,  abstracts 
of  military  warrants  and  of  agricultural  college  scrip  located,  accompanied 
by  the  certificates  of  purchase,  Receiver's  receipts.  Homestead  applications 
and  affidavits,  warrants  and  agricultm'al  college  scrip,  and  certificates  of 
location. 

Tlie  abstracts  are  all  to  be  critically  examined  and  thereafter  duly 
certified  by  Register  and  Receiver  as  correct  and  in  conformity  with  the 
records  and  the  papers,  and  that  all  agree  with  each  other. 

The  Receiver  is  required  also  to  render  promj^tly  a  monthly  account 
of  all  the  moneys  received,  showing  the  balance  due  the  Government  at 
the  close  of  each  month. 


TO    OBTAIN   TITLE    TO    PUBLIC    LANDS.  11 

At  the  end  of  every  quarter  lie  also  must  transmit  a  quarterly  account 
as  Receiver ;  upon  the  several  accounts  an  adjustment  is  here  made  and 
submitted  to  the  Treasury  Department  for  final  settlement. 

He  must  also  render  a  quarterly  disbursing  account  of  all  moneys 
expended. 

The  receiver  is  required  to  deposit  the  moneys  received  by  him  at 
some  depository  designated  by  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury  when  the 
amount  on  hand  shall  have  reached  the  sum  of  two  thousand  dollars  ; 
and  in  no  case  is  he  authorized,  without  special  instructions,  to  hold  a 
larger  amount  in  his  hands. 

30.  It  is  the  duty  of  the  Registers  and  Receivers  to  be  in  attendance 
at  fheir  offices,  and  give  proper  facilities  and  information  to  persons  ap- 
plying for  lands. 

31.  A  hst  of  all  the  District  Land  Offices  in  the  United  States  is 
hereto  annexed. 

32.  Laws  and  instructions  relating  to  mining  claims  form  the  subject 
of  a  separate  circular. 

JOS.  S.  WILS01^f, 
Commissioner  of  the  General  Land  Office. 


(A.) 

AN  ACT  to  appropriate  the  proceeds  of  the  sales  of  the  public  lands  and  to  grant  pre-emption  rights. 

Sec.  10.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That,  from  and  after  the  passage  of  this  act,  every 
person,  being  tlie  head  of  a  family,  or  widow,  or  single  man  over  the  age  of  twenty-one  years 
and  being  a  citizen  of  the  United  States,  or  having  filed  his  declaration  of  intention  to  become 
a  citizen  as  required  by  the  naturalization  laws,  who,  since  the  first  day  of  June,  A.  D. 
eighteen  hundred  and  forty,  has  made,  or  shall  hereafter  make,  a  settlement  in  person  on  the 
public  lands  to  which  the  Indian  title  had  been,  at  the  time  of  such  settlement,  extinguished, 
and  which  has  been,  or  shall  have  been,  surveyed  prior  thereto,  and  who  shall  inhabit  and 
improve  the  same,  and  who  has  or  shall  erect  a  dwelling  thereon,  shall  be,  and  is  hereby, 
authorized  to  enter  with  the  register  of  the  land  office  for  the  district  in  which  such  land  may 
lie,  by  legal  subdivisions,  any  number  of  acres  not  exceeding  one  hundred  and  sixty,  or  a 
quarter  section  of  land,  to  include  the  residence  of  such  claimant,  upon  paying  to  the  United 
States  the  minimum  price  of  such  land,  subject,  however,  to  the  following  limitations  and  ex- 
ceptions: No  person  shall  be  entitled  to  more  than  one  pre-emptive  right  by  virtue  of  this  act; 
no  person  who  is  the  proprietor  of  three  hundred  and  twenty  acres  of  land  in  any  State  or 
Territory  of  the  United  States,  and  no  person  who  shall  quit  or  abandon  his  residence  on  his 
own  land  to  reside  on  the  public  land  in  the  same  State  or  Territory,  shall  acquire  any  right 
of  pre-emption  under  this  act;  no  lands  included  in  any  reservation,  by  any  treaty,  law,  or 
proclamation  of  the  President  of  the  United  States,  or  reserved  for  salines,  or  for  other  pur- 
poses; no  lands  reserved  for  the  support  of  schools,  nor  the  lands  acquired  by  cither  of  the 
two  last  treaties  with  the  Miami  tribe  of  Indians  in  the  State  of  Indiana,  or  which  may  be  ac- 
quired of  the  Wyandot  tribe  of  Indians,  in  the  State  of  Ohio,  or  other  Indian  reservation  to 
which  the  title  has  been  or  may  be  extinguished  by  the  United  States  at  any  time  during  the 
operation  of  this  act;  no  sections  of  land  reserved  to  the  United  States  alternate  to  other 
sections  granted  to  any  of  the  States  for  the  construction  of  any  canal,  railroad,  or  other  public 
improvement ;  no  sections  or  fractions  of  sections  included  within  the  limits  of  any  incorporated 
town ;  no  portions  of  the  public  lands  which  have  been  selected  as  the  site  for  a  city  or  town ; 
no  parcel  or  lot  of  land  actually  settled  and  occupied  for  the  purposes  of  trade  and  not  agri- 
culture ;  and  no  lands  on  which  are  situated  any  known  salines  or  mines,  shall  be  liable  to 
entry  under  and  by  virtue  of  the  provisions  of  this  act.  And  so  much  of  the  proviso  of  the 
act  of  twenty-second  of  June,  eighteen  hundred  and  thirty-eight,  or  any  order  of  the  President 
of  the  United  States,  as  directs  certain  reservations  to  be  made  in  favor  of  certain  claims  under 
the  treaty  of  Dancing  Rabbit  Creek,  be,  and  the  same  is  hereby  repealed :  Provided,  That 
such  repeal  shall  not  affect  any  title  to  any  tract  of  land  secured  in  virtue  of  said  treaty. 

Sec.  11.  And  he  it  further  enacted.  That  when  two  or  more  persons  shall  have  settled  on 
the  same  quarter  section  of  land,  the  right  of  pre-emption  shall  be  in  him  or  her  who  made 
the  first  settlement,  provided  such  persons  shall  conform  to  the  other  provisions  of  this  act ;  and 
all  questions  as  to  the  right  of  pre-emption  arising  between  different  settlers  shall  be  settled  by 
the  register  and  receiver  of  the  district  within  which  the  land  is  situated,  subject  to  an  appeal  to 
and  a  revision  by  the  *Secretary  of  the  Treasury  [Interior]  of  the  United  States. 

Sec.  12.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  prior  to  any  entries  being  made  under  and  by 
virtue  of  the  provisions  of  this  act,  proof  of  the  settlement  and  improvement  thereby  required 
shall  be  made  to  the  satisfaction  of  the  register  and  receiver  of  the  land  district  in  which  such 
lands  may  lie,  agreeably  to  such  rules  as  shall  be  prescribed  by  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury, 
[Interior,]  who  shall  each  be  entitled  to  receive  fifty  cents  from  each  applicant  for  his  services, 
to  be  rendered  as  aforesaid;  and  all  assignments  and  transfers  of  the  right  hereby  secured, 
prior  to  the  issuing  of  the  patent,  shall  be  null  and  void. 


*  Appellate  power  rested  in  Commissioner  of  the  General  Land  Office.    See  10th  sec.  act  12th  June,  1858, 
(Statutes,  vol.  11,  p.  326.) 


TO  OBTAIN  TITLE  TO  PUBLIC  LANDS.  13 


Sec.  13.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  before  any  person  claiming  the  benefit  of  this  act 
shall  be  allowed  to  enter  such  lands,  he  or  she  shall  make  oath  before  the  receiver  or  register 
of  the  land  district  in  which  the  land  is  situated  (who  are  hereby  authorized  to  administer  the 
same)  that  he  or  she  has  never  had  the  benefit  of  any  right  of  pre-emption  under  this  act; 
that  he  or  she  is  not  the  owner  of  three  hundred  and  twenty  acres  of  land  in  any  State  or 
Territory  of  the  United  States,  nor  hath  he  or  she  settled  upon  and  improved  said  land  to  sell 
the  same  on  speculation,  but  in  good  faith  to  appropriate  it  to  his  or  her  own  exclusive  use  or 
benefit;  and  that  he  or  she  has  not.  directly  or  indirectly,  made  any  agreement  or  contract,  in 
any  way  or  manner,  with  any  person  or  persons  whatsoever,  by  which  the  title  which  he  or 
she  might  acquire  frotn  the  government  of  the  United  States  should  inure  in  whole  or  in  part 
to  the  benefit  of  any  person  except  himself  or  herself ;  and  if  any  person  taking  such  oath 
shall  swear  falsely  in  the  premises,  he  or  she  shall  be  subject  to  all  the  pains  and  penalties  of 
perjury,  and  shall  forfeit  the  money  which  he  or  she  may  have  paid  for  said  land,  and  all 
right  and  title  to  the  same ;  and  any  grant  or  conveyance  which  he  or  she  may  have  made, 
except  in  the  hands  of  bona  fide  purchasers,  for  a  valuable  consideration,  shall  be  null  and 
void.  And  it  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  ofBcer  administering  such  oath  to  file  a  certificate 
thereof  in  the  public  land  office  of  such  district,  and  to  transmit  a  duplicate  copy  to  the  Gen- 
eral Land  Office ;  either  of  which  shall  be  good  and  sufficient  evidence  that  such  oath  was 
administered  according  to  law. 

Sec.  14.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  this  act  shall  not  delay  the  sale  of  any  of  the 
public  lands  of  the  United  States  beyond  the  time  which  has  been,  or  may  be,  appointed  by 
the  proclamation  of  the  President ;  nor  shall  the  pi'ovisions  of  this  act  be  available  to  any 
person  or  persons  who  shall  fixil  to  make  the  proof  and  payment,  and  file  the  affidavit  required, 
before  the  day  appointed  for  the  commencement  of  the  sales  as  aforesaid. 

Sec.  15.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  whenever  any  person  has  settled  or  shall  settle 
and  improve  a  tract  of  land  subject  at  the  time  of  settlement  to  private  entrj^  and  shall  intend 
to  purchase  the  same  under  the  provisions  of  this  act,  such  person  shall,  in  the  first  case, 
within  three  months  after  the  passage  of  the  same,  and  in  the  last,  within  thirty  days  next 
after  the  date  of  such  settlement,  file  with  the  register  of  the  proper  district  a  written  state- 
ment describing  the  lands  settled  upon,  and  declaring  the  intention  of  such  person  to  claim 
the  same  under  the  provisions  of  this  act;  and  shall,  where  such  settlement  is  already  made, 
within  twelve  months  after  the  passage  of  this  act,  and  where  it  shall  hereafter  be  made, 
within  the  same  period  after  the  date  of  such  settlement,  make  the  proof,  affidavit,  and  pay- 
ment herein  required ;  and  if  he  or  she  shall  fail  to  file  such  written  statement  as  aforesaid, 
or  shall  fail  to  make  such  affidavit,  proof,  and  payment  within  the  twelve  months  aforesaid, 
the  tract  of  land  so  settled  and  improved  shall  be  subject  to  the  entry  of  any  other  purchaser. 

Approved  September  4,  1841.  * 


(B.) 

AN  ACT  to  authorize  the  investigation  of  alleged  frauds  under  the  pre-emption  laws,  and  for  other  purposes. 
Be  it  enacted  by  the  Senate  and  House  of  Eepresentatives  of  the  United  States  of  America  in 
Congress  assembled,  That  the  Commissioner  of  the  General  Land  Office  be,  and  he  hereby  is, 
authorized  to  appoint  a  competent  agent,  whose  duty  it  shall  be,  under  direction  of  said 
Commissioner,  to  investigate,  upon  oath,  the  cases  of  fraud  under  the  pre-emption  laws 
alleged  to  exist  in  the  Colum"bus  land  district,  in  the  State  of  Mississippi,  referred  to  in  the 
late  annual  report  of  said  Commissioner,  communicated  to  Congress  by  letter  of  the  Secretary 
of  the  Treasury  dated  December  the  fifteenth,  one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  forty-two; 
and  that  such  agent  shall  examine  all  witnesses  who  may  be  brought  before  him  by  the 
individual  or  individuals  alleging  the  fraud,  as  well  as  those  witnesses  who  may  be  produced 
by  the  parties  in  interest  to  sustain  said  claims  ;  and  that  he  be,  and  is  hereby,  invested  with 
power  to  administer  to  such  witnesses  an  oath  to  speak  the  truth  in  regard  to  any  question 
which  may  be  deemed  necessary  to  the  full  examination  of  the  cases  so  alleged  to  be  fraudu- 
lent ;  and  such  testimony  shall  be  reduced  to  writing,  and  ^bscribed  by  each  witness,  and 
the  same  returned  to  the  Commissioner,  with  the  opinion  of  said  agent  on  each  claim ;  and 


14  MANNER    OF   PROCEEDING 


any  witness  so  examined  before  the  said  agent,  who  shall  swear  willfully  and  falsely  in 
regard  to  any  matter  or  thing  touching  such  examination,  shall  be  subject,  on  conviction,  to 
all  the  pains  and  penalties  of  perjury;  and  it  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  Commissioner  to  decide 
the  cases  thus  returned,  and  finally  to  settle  the  matter  in  controversy,  subject  alone  to  an 
appeal  to  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury :  Provided,  That  the  power  conferred  by  this  section 
upon  such  agent  is  hereby  limited  to  the  term  of  one  year  from  and  after  the  date  of  this  act ; 
and  the  compensation  to  be  paid  to  said  agent  shall  not  exceed  three  dollars  per  day  for  each 
day  he  may  be  necessarily  engaged  in  the  performance  of  the  duties  required  by  this  section. 

Sec.  2.  And  he  it  further  enacted,  That  in  any  case  where  a  party  entitled  to  claim  the  ben- 
efits of  any  of  the  pre-emption  laws  shall  have  died  before  consummating  his  claim  by  filing, 
in  due  time,  all  the  papers  essential  to  the  establishment  of  the  same,  it  shall  be  competent  for 
the  executor  or  administrator  of  the  estate  of  such  party,  or  one  of  the  heirs,  to  file  the  neces- 
sary papers  to  complete  the  same :  Provided,  That  the  entry  in  such  cases  shall  be  made  in 
favor  of  "the  heirs"  of  the  deceased  pre-emptor,  and  a  patent  thereon  shall  cause  the  title  to 
inure  to  said  heirs  as  if  their  names  had  been  specially  mentioned. 

Sec.  3.  And  be  it  further  enacted.  That  every  settler  on  section  sixteen,  reserved  for  the  use 
of  schools,  or  on  other  reserves  or  land  covered  by  private  claims  of  others,  which  was  not 
surveyed  at  the  time  of  such  settlement,  and  who  shall  otherwise  come  within  the  provisions 
of  the  several  pre-emption  laws  in  force  at  the  time  of  the  settlement,  upon  proof  thereof  before 
the  register  of  the  proper  land  oiBce,  shall  be  entitled  to  enter,  at  the  minimum  price,  any 
other  quarter  section,  or  fractional  section,  or  fractional  quarter  section,  in  the  land  district  in 
which  such  school  section  or  reserve  or  private  claim  may  lie,  so  as  not  to  exceed  one  hundred 
and  sixty  acres,  not  reserved  from  sale  or  in  the  occupancy  of  any  actual  bona  fide  settler: 
Provided,  Such  settlement  was  made  before  the  dat«  of  the  act  of  fourth  September,  eighteen 
hundred  and  forty-one,  and  after  the  extinguishment  of  the  Indian  title. 

Sec.  4.  And  be  it  further  enacted.  That  where  an  individual  has  filed,  under  the  late  pre- 
emption law,  his  declaration  of  intention  to  claim  the  benefits  of  said  law  for  one  tract  of  land 
it  shall  not  be  lawful  for  the  same  individual  at  any  future  time  to  file  a  second  declaration 
for  another  tract. 

Sec.  5.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  claimants  under  the  late  pre-emption  law,  for  land 
not  yet  proclaimed  for  sale,  are  required  to  make  known  their  claims,  in  writing,  to  the  reg- 
ister of  the  proper  land  oiBce,  within  three  months  from  the  date  of  this  act  when  the  settle- 
ment has  been  already  made,  and  within  three  months  from  the  time  of  the  settlement  when 
Buch  settlements  shall  hereafter  be  made,  giving  the  designation  of  the  tract  and  the  time  of 
settlement ;  otherwise  his  claim  to  be  forfeited,  and  the  tract  awarded  to  the  next  settler,  in 
the  order  of  time,  on  the  same  tract  of  land,  who  shall  have  given  such  notice,  and  otherwise 
complied  with  th»  conditions  of  the  law. 

Sec.  -6.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  whenever  the  vacancy  of  the  office  either  of  register 
or  receiver,  or  of  both,  shall  render  it  impossible  for  the  claimant  to  comply  with  any  requisi- 
tion of  any  of  the  pre-emption  laws  within  the  appointed  time,  such  vacancy  shall  not  operate 
to  the  detriment  of  the  party  claiming  in  respect  to  any  matter  essential  to  the  establishment 
of  his  claim :  Provided,  That  such  requisition  is  complied  with  within  the  same  period  after 
the  disability  is  removed  as  would  have  been  allowed  him  had  such  disability  not  existed. 

Sec.  7.  And  he  it  further  enacted,  That  where  u  settler  on  the  public  lands  may  reside  on  a 
quarter  section,  a  fractional  quarter  section,  or  a  fraction  of  a  section  less  than  one  hundred 
and  sixty  acres,  and  cultivated  land  on  any  other  and  different  tract  of  either  of  the  descrip- 
tions aforesaid,  he  or  she  shall  be  entitled,  under  the  act  of  June  twenty-two,  one  thousand 
eight  hundred  and  thirty-eight,  to  the  same  privileges  of  a  choice  between  two  legal  subdi- 
visions of  each,  so  as  to  include  his  or  her  house  and  farm,  not  to  exceed  one  hundred  and 
fiixty  acres  in  all,  as  is  granted  by  the  first  section  of  that  act  to  settlers  residing  on  a  quarter 
section,  and  cultivating  on  another  and  different  quarter. 

Sec.  8.  And  be  it  further  enacted.  That  where  two  or  more  persons  are  residing  on  any  of 
the  species  of  tracts  specified  in  section  seven  of  this  act,  as  required  by  the  acts  of  the  twenty- 
second  of  June,  one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  thirty-eight,  and  the  first  of  June,  one  thou- 
sand eight  hundred  and  forty,  aSid  any  one  or  more  of  said  settlers  may  have  cultivated  land 


TO    OBTAIN    TITLE    TO    PUBLIC    LANDS.  15 


during  the  period  of  residence  required  by  either  of  said  acts  on  another  and  different  tract, 
or  other  and  different  tracts,  the  latter  mentioned  settlers  shall  be  entitled  to  the  option  of 
entering  the  tract  lived  on,  jointly  with  the  other  or  others,  or  of  abandoning  the  tract  lived 
on  to  those  who  have  not  cultivated  land  as  above  required,  and  entering  the  tract  or  tracts 
cultivated,  so  as  not  to  exceed  one  hundred  and  sixty  acres  to  any  one  settler,  who,  by  virtue 
of  this  section,  is  entitled  to  a  separate  entry  ;  or  such  joint  s^ettlers  may  jointly  enter  the  tract 
so  jointly  occupied  by  them,  and,  in  addition,  enter  other  contiguous  unoccupied  lands,  by 
legal  subdivisions,  so  as  not  to  exceed  one  hundred  and  sixty  acres  in  all  to  each  of  such  joint 
settlers :  Frovided,  That  the  extended  privileges  granted  to  pre-emptors  by  this  act  shall  not 
be  construed  to  deprive  any  other  actual  settler  of  his  or  her  previous  and  paramount  right 
of  pre-emption,  or  to  extend  to  lands  reserved  for  any  other  purpose  whatever. 

Sec.  9.  And  heit  further  enacted,  That  all  persons  coming  Avithin  the  tenth  section  of  the 
act  of  the  fourth  of  September,  eighteen  hundred  and  forty-one,  entitled  "An  Act  to  appropri- 
ate the  proceeds  of  the  sales  of  the  public  lands  and  to  grant  pre-emption  rights,"  shall  be 
entitled  to  the  right  of  pre-emption  under  its  provisions,  notwithstanding  such  persons  claim- 
ing the  pre-emption  shall  have  settled  upon  and  improved  the  lands  claimed  before  the  sai&e 
were  surveyed :  Provided,  Such  settlements  were  made  before  the  date  of  the  aforesaid  act, 
and  after  the  extinguishment  of  the  Indian  title.  And  said  act  shall  not  be  so  construed  as  to 
preclude  any  person  who  may  have  filed  a  notice  of  intention  to  claim  any  tract  of  land  by 
pre-emption,  under  said  act,  from  the  right  allowed  by  law  to  others  to  purchase  the  same  by 
private  entry  after  the  expiration  of  the  right  of  pre-emption. 

Approved  March  3,  1843. 


(C.) 
AN  ACT  to  extend  pre-emption  rights  to  certain  lands  therein  mentioned. 

Be  it  enacted  hy  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives  of  tJie  United  States  of  America  in 
Conrjrcss  assembled,  That  the  pre-emption  laws  of  the  United  States,  as  they  now.  exist,  be, 
and  they  are  hereby,  extended  over  the  alternate  reserved  sections  of  public  lands  along  the 
lines  of  all  the  railroads  in  the  United  States,  wherever  public  lands  have  been,  or  may  be, 
granted  by  acts  of  Congress ;  and  that  it  shall  be  the  privilege  of  the  persons  residing  on  any 
of  said  reserved  lands,  to  pay  for  the  same  in  soldiers'  bounty  land  warrants,  estimated  at  a 
dollar  and  twenty-five  cents  per  acre,  or  in  gold  and  silver,  or  both  together,  in  preference  to 
any  other  person,  and  at  any  time  before  the  same  shall  be  offered  for  sale  at  auction :  Pro- 
vided, That  no  person  shall  be  entitled  to  the  benefit  of  this  act  who  has  not  settled  and  im- 
proved, or  shall  not  settle  and  improve,  such  lands  prior  to  the  final  allotment  of  the  alternate 
sections  to  such  railroads  by  the  General  Land  Office  :  And  provided  further.  That  the  price 
to  be  paid  shall,  in  all  cases,  be  two  dollars  and  fifty  cents  per  acre,  or  such  other  minimum 
price  as  is  now  fixed  by  law,  or  may  be  fixed,  upon  lands  hereafter  granted  ;  and  no  one  person 
shall  have  the  right  of  pre-emption  to  more  than  one  hundred  and  sixty  acres :  And  provided 
further.  That  any  settler  who  has  settled,  or  may  hereafter  settle,  on  lands  heretofore  resci-ved 
on  account  of  claims  under  French,  Spanish,  or  other  grants  which  have  been,  or  shall  be, 
hereafter  declared  by  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States  to  be  invalid,  shall  be  entitled 
to  all  the  rights  of  pre-emption  granted  by  this  act  and  the  act  of  fourth  September,  eighteen 
himdred  and  forty-one,  entitled  "  An  Act  to  appropriate  the  proceeds  of  the  public  lands  and 
to  grant  pre-emption  rights,"  after  the  lands  shall  have  been  I'eleased  from  reservation,  in  the 
same  manner  as  if  no  reservation  existed. 

Approved  March  3,  1853. 


(D.) 

AN  ACT  for  the  relief  of  settlers  on  lands  reserved  for  railroad  purposes. 
Be  it  enacted  by  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives  of  the   United  States  of  America  in 
Conrjrcss  assembled,  That  every  settler  on  public  lands  which  have  been,  or  may  be,  with- 


16  MANNEE    OF    PROCEEDINU 


drawn  from  market  in  consequence  of  proposed  railroads,  and  wlio  had  settled  thereon  prior  to 
such  withdrawal,  shall  be  entftled  to  pre-emption,  at  the  ordinary  minimum,  to  the  lands 
settled  on  and  cultivated  by  them :  Provided,  They  shall  prove  up  their  rights  according  to 
such  rules  and  regulations  as  may  be  prescribed  by  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior,  and  pay  tor 
the  same  before  the  day  that  may  be  fixed  by  the  President's  proclamation  for  the  restoration 
of  said  lands  to  market. 
Approved  March  27,  1854. 


(E.) 

AN  ACT  to  establish  aland  office  in  Colorado  Territory,  and  for  other  purposes. 
Be  it  enacted  by  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives  of  the  United  States  of  America  in 
Congress  assembled,  That  all  the  lands  belonging  to  the  United  States  to  which  the  Indian 
title  has  been  or  shall  be  extinguished,  shall  be  subject  to  the  operations  of  the  pre-emption 
act  of  the  4th  September,  1841,  and  under  the  conditions,  restrictions,  and  stipulations  therein 
mentioned:  Frovided  hoioever,  That  Avhen  imsurveyed  lands  are  claimed  by  pre-emption, 
notice  of  the  specific  tracts  claimed  shall  be  filed  within  six  months  after  the  survey  has  been 
made  in  the  field ;  and  on  failure  to  file  such  notice,  or  to  pay  for  the  tract  claimed  within 
twelve  months  from  the  filing  of  such  notice,  the  parties  claiming  such  laiids  shall  forfeit  all 
right  thereto,  provided  said  notices  may  be  filed  with  the  Surveyor  General,  and  to  be  noted 
by  him  on  the  township  plats,  until  other  aiTangements  have  been  made  by  law  for  that 
purpose. 

Approved  June  2,  1862. 


(F.) 
AN  ACT  to  secure  homesteads  to  actual  settlers  on  the  public  domain. 

Be  it  enacted  by  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives  of  the  United  States  of  America  in 
Con'jress  assembled,  That  any  person  who  is  the  head  of  a  family,  or  who  has  arrived  at  the 
age  of  twenty-one  years  and  is  a  citizen  of  the  United  States,  or  who  shall  have  filed  his  dec- 
laration of  intention  to  become  such,  as  required  by  the  naturalization  laws  of  the  United 
States,  and  who  has  never  borne  arms  against  the  United  States  government  or  given  aid  and 
comfort  to  its  enemies,  shall,  from  and  after  the  fii-st  January,  eighteen  hundred  and  sLxty- 
three,  be  entitled  to  enter  one  quarter  section  or  a  less  quantity  of  unappropriated  public  lands, 
upon  which  said  person  may  have  filed  a  pre-emption  claim,  or  which  may,  at  the  time  the  appli- 
cation is  made,  be  subject  to  pre-emption  at  one  dollar  and  twenty-five  cents  or  less  per  acre ;  or 
eighty  acres  or  less  of  such  unappropriated  lands  at  two  dollars  and  fifty  cents  per  acre,  to  be 
located  in  a  body,  in  conformity  to  the  legal  subdivisions  of  the  public  lands,  and  after  the 
same  shall  have  been  surveyed :  Provided,  That  any  person  owning  and  residing  on  land 
may,  under  the  provisions  of  this  act,  enter  other  land  lying  contiguous  to  his  or  her  said  land, 
which  shall  not,  with  the  land  so  already  owned  and  occupied,  exceed  in  the  aggregate  one 
hundred  and  sixty  acres. 

Sec.  2.  And  be  it  farther  enacted,  Tliat  the  person  applying  for  the  benefit  of  this  act 
shall,  upon  application  to  the  register  of  the  land  office  in  which  he  or  she  is  about  to  make 
such  entry,  make  affidavit  before  the  said  register  or  receiver  that  he  or  she  is  the  head  of  a 
family,  or  is  twenty-one  or  more  years  of  age,  or  shall  have  performed  service  in  the  army  or 
navy  of  the  United  States,  and  that  he  has  never  borne  arms  against  the  government  of  the 
United  States  or  given  aid  and  comfort  to  its  enemies,  and  that  such  application  is  made  for 
his  or  her  exclusive  use  and  benefit,  and  that  said  entry  is  made  for  the  purpose  of  actual  set- 
tlement and  cultivation,  and  not,  either  directly  or  indirectly,  for  the  use  or  benefit  of  any 
other  person  or  persons  whomsoever ;  and  upon  filing  the  said  affidavit  with  the  register  or 


TO  OBTAIN  TITLE  TO  PUBLIC  LANDS.  17 


receiver,  aud  on  payment  of  ten  dollars,  he  or  she  shall  thereupon  he  permitted  to  enter  the 
quantity  of  land  specified :  Provided  however,  That  no  certificate  shall  be  given  or  patent  issued 
therefor  until  the  expiration  of  five  years  from  the  date  of  such  entry ;  and  if,  at  the  expiration 
of  such  time,  or  at  any  time  within  two  years  thereafter,  ihe  person  making  such  entry — or,  if 
he  be  dead,  his  wiilow;  or,  in  case  of  her  death,  his  heirs  or  devisee;  or,  in  case  of  a  widoAV 
making  such  entry,  her  lioirs  or  devisee,  in  case  of  her  death — shall  prove  by  two  credible 
witnesses  that  he,  she,  or  they  have  resided  upon  or  cultivated  the  same  for  the  term  of  five 
years  immediately  succeeding  the  time  of  filing  the  affidavit  aforesaid,  and  shall  make  affida- 
vit that  no  part  of  said  land  has  been  alienated,  and  that  he  has  borne  true  allegiance  to  the 
government  of  the  United  States ;  then,  in  such  case,  he,  she,  or  they,  if  at  that  time  a  citizen 
of  the  United  States,  shall  be  entitled  to  a  patent,  as  in  other  cases  provided  by  law:  And 
provided  further,  That  in  case  of  the  death  of  both  father  and  mother,  leaving  an  infant  child 
or  children  under  twenty-one  years  of  age,  the  right  and  fee  shall  inure  to  the  benefit  of  said 
infant  child  or  children ;  and  the  executor,  administrator,  or  guardian  may,  at  any  time 
within  two  years  after  the  death  of  the  surviving  parent,  and  in  accordance  with  the  laws  of 
the  State  in  which  such  children  for  the  time  being  have  their  domicile,  sell  said  land  for  the 
benefit  of  said  infants,  but  for  no  other  purpose;  and  the  purchaser  shall  acquire  the  absolute 
title  by  the  purchase,  and  be  entitled  to  a  patent  from  the  United  States,  on  payment  of  the 
office  fees  and  sum  of  money  herein  specified. 

Sec.  3.  And  be  it  farther  enacted,  That  the  register  of  the  land  office  shall  note  all  such 
applications  on  the  tract  books  and  plats  of  his  office,  and  keep  a  register  of  all  such  entries, 
and  make  return  thereof  to  the  General  Land  Office,  together  with  the  proof  upon  which  they 
have  been  founded. 

Sec.  4.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  no  lands  acquired  under  the  provisions  of  this  act 
shall  in  any  event  become  liable  to  the  satisfaction  of  any  debt  or  debts  contracted  prior  to  the 
issiung  of  the  patent  therefor. 

Sec.  5.  And  be  it  further  enacted.  That  if,  at  any  time  after  the  filing  of  the  affidavit,  as 
required  in  the  second  section  of  this  act,  and  before  the  expiration  of  the  five  years  aforesaid, 
it  shall  be  proven,  after  due  notice  to  the  settler,  to  the  satisfaction  of  the  register  of  the  land 
office,  that  the  person  having  filed  such  affidavit  shall  have  actually  changed  his  or  her  resi- 
dence, or  abandoned  the  said  land  for  more  than  six  months  at  any  time,  then  and  in  that 
event  the  laud  so  entered  shall  revert  to  the  government. 

Sec.  6.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  no  individual  shall  be  permitted  to  acquire  title  to 
more  than  one  quarter  section  under  the  provisions  of  this  act;  and  that  the  Conmiissioner 
of  the  General  Land  Office  is  hereby  required  to  prepare  aud  issue  such  rules  and  regulations 
consistent  with  this  act,  as  shall  be  necessary  and  proper  to  carry  its  provisions  into  effect; 
and  that  the  registers  and  receivers  of  the  several  land  offices  shall  be  entitled  to  receive  the 
same  compensation  for  any  lands  entered  under  the  provisions  of  this  act  that  they  are  now 
entitled  to  receive  when  the  same  quantity  of  land  is  entered  with  money,  one-hulf  to  be  paid 
by  the  person  making  the  application  iit  the  time  of  so  doing,  and  the  other  half  on  the  issue 
of  the  certificate  by  the  person  to  whom  it  may  be  issued ;  but  this  shall  not  be  construed  to 
enlarge  the  maximum  of  compensation  now  prescribed  by  law  for  any  register  or  receiver : 
Provided,  That  nothing  contained  in  this  act  shall  be  so  construed  as  to  impair  or  interfere 
in  any  manner  whatever  with  existing  pre-emption  rights :  And  provided  further.  That  all 
persons  who  may  have  filed  their  application  for  a  pre-emption  right  prior  to  the  passage  of 
this  act  shall  be  entitled  to  all  privileges  of  this  act :  Provided  further.  That  no  person  who 
has  served,  or  may  hereafter  serve,  for  a  period  of  not  less  than  fourteen  days  in  the  army  or 
navy  of  the  United  States,  either  regular  or  volunteer,  under  the  laws  thereof,  during  the 
existence  of  an  actual  war,  domestic  or  foreign,  shall  be  deprived  of  the  benefits  of  this  act  on 
account  of  not  having  attained  the  age  of  twenty-one  years. 

Sec.  7,  And  be  it  further  enacted.  That  the  fifth  section  of  the  act  entitled  "  An  Act  in  addi- 
tion to  an  Act  more  efiectually  to  provide  for  the  punishment  of  certain  crimes  against  the 
United  States,  and  for  other  purposes,"  approved  the  third  of  March,  in  the  year  eighteen 
hundred  and  fifty-seven,  shall  extend  to  all  oaths,  affirmations,  and  affidavits  required  or 
authorized  by  this  act. 

3 


MANNER    OF    PROCEEDING 


Sec.  8.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  nothing  in  this  act  shall  be  so  construed  as  to  pre- 
vent any  person  who  has  availed  him  or  herself  of  the  benefits  of  the  first  section  of  this  act 
from  paying  the  minimum  price,  or  the  price  to  which  the  same  may  have  graduated,  for  the 
quantity  of  land  so  entered  at  any  time  before  the  expiration  of  the  five  years,  and  obtaining 
a  patent  therefor  from  the  government,  as  in  other  cases  provided  by  law,  on  making  proof  of 
settlement  and  cultivation  as  provided  by  existing  laws  granting  pre-emption  rights. 

Approved  May  20,  1862. 


(G.) 

AN  ACT  amendatory  of  the  Homestead  law,  and  for  other  purposes. 

Be  it  enacted  by  the  Senate  and  House  of  Bepresentatives  of  the  United  States  of  America  in 
Congress  assembled,  That  in  case  of  any  person  desirous  of  availing  himself  of  the  benefits  of 
the  homestead  act  of  twentieth  May,  eighteen  hundred  and  sixty-two,  but  who,  by  reason  of 
actual  service  in  the  military  or  naval  service  of  the  United  States,  is  unable  to  do  the  personal 
preliminary  acts  at  the  district  land  office  which  the  said  act  of  twentieth  May,  eighteen  hun- 
dred and  sixty-two  requires,  and  whose  family,  or  some  member  thereof,  is  residing  on  the 
land  which  he  desires  to  enter,  and  upon  which  a  bona  fide  improvement  and  settlement  have 
been  made,  it  shall  and  may  be  lawful  for  such  person  to  make  the  affidavit  required  by  said 
act  before  the  officer  commanding  in  the  branch  of  tlie  service  in  which  the  party  may  be  en- 
gaged, which  affidavit  shall  be  as  binding  in  law,  and  with  like  penalties,  as  if  taken  before 
the  register  or  receiver;  and  upon  such  affidavit  being  filed  with  the  register  by  the  wife,  or 
other  representative  of  the  party,  the  same  shall  become  effective  from  the  date  of  such  filing, 
provided  the  said  application  and  affidavit  are  accompanied  by  the  fee  and  commissions  as 
required  by  law. 

Sec.  2.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That,  besides  the  ten-dollar  fee  exacted  by  the  said  act, 
the  homestead  applicant  shall  hereafter  pay  to  the  register  and  receiver  each,  as  commissions, 
at  the  time  of  entry,  one  per  centum  upon  the  cash  price  as  fixed  by  law  of  the  laud  applied 
for,  and  like  commissions  when  the  claim  is  finally  established  and  the  certificate  therefor 
issued  as  the  basis  of  a  patent. 

Sec.  3.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  in  any  case  hereafter  in  which  the  applicant  for 
the  benefit  of  the  homestead,  and  whose  family,  or  some  member  thereof,  is  residing  on  the 
land  which  he  desires  to  enter,  and  upon  which  a  bona  fide  improvement  and  settlement  have 
been  made,  is  prevented,  by  reason  of  distance,  bodily  infirmity,  or  other  good  cause,  from 
personal  atten  lance  at  the  district  land  office,  it  shall  and  may  be  lawful  for  him  to  make  the 
affidavit  required  by  the  original  statute  before  tlie  clerk  of  the  court  for  the  county  in  which 
the  applicant  is  an  actual  resident,  and  to  transmit  tlie  same,  with  the  fee  and  commissions, 
to  the  register  and  i-eceiver. 

Sec.  4.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  in  lieu  of  the  fee  allowed  by  the  tAvelfth  section  of 
the  pre-emption  act  of  fourth  of  September,  eighteen  hundred  and  forty-one,  the  register  and 
receiver  shall  each  be  entitled  to  one  dollar  for  their  services  in  acting  upon  pre-emption 
claims,  and  shall  be  allowed,  jointly,  at  the  rate  of  fifteen  cents  per  hundred  words,  for  the 
testimony  which  may  be  reduced  by  them  to  writing  for  claimants  in  establishing  pre-emption 
or  homestead  rights;  the  regulations  for  giving  proper  effect  to  the  provisions  of  this  act  to 
be  prescribed  by  the  Commissioner  of  the  General  Land  Office. 

Six.  5.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  where  a  pre-emptor  has  taken  the  initiatory  steps 
required  by  existing  laws  in  regard  to  actual  settlement,  and  is  called  away  from  such  settle- 
ment by  being  actually  engaged  in  thi^  military  or  naval  service  of  the  United  States,  and  by- 
reason  of  such  absence  is  unable  to  appear  at  the  district  land  office  to  make,  before  the  regis- 
ter or  recevier,  the  affidavits  required  by  the  thirteenth  secti<m  of  tlie  pre-emption  act  of 
fourth  of  September,  eighteen  hundred  and  forty-one,  the  time  for  filing  such  affidavit  and 
making  final  proof  and  entry  of  location  shall  be  extended  six  montlie  after  the  expiration  of 


his  temi  of  service,  upon  satisfactory  proofj  by  aifidavit  or  the  testimony  of  witnesses,  tliat 
the  said  pre-emptor  is  so  in  the  service,  being  filed  with  the  register  of  the  land  office  for  the 
district  in  which  his  settlement  is  made. 

Sec.  6.  And  he  it  furtlier  enacted,  That  the  registers  and  receivers  in  the  State  of  Califor- 
nia, in  the  State  of  Oregon,  and  in  the  Territories  of  Washington,  Nevada,  Colorado,  Idaho, 
New  Mexico,  and  Arizona,  shall  be  entitled  to  collect  and  receive,  in  addition  to  the  fees  and 
allowances  provided  by  tliis  act,  fifty  per  centum  of  said  fees  and  allowances  as  compensation 
for  their  services:  Provided,  That  the  salary  and  fees  allowed  any  register  or  receiver  shall 
not  exceed  in  the  aggregate  the  sum  of  three  thousand  dollars  per  annum. 

Approved  March  21,  1864. 


(H.) 

AN  ACT  for  the  disposal  of  the  pnblio  lands  for  homestead  actual  settlement  in  the  States  of  Alabama; 
Mississippi,  Louisianna,  Arkansas,  and  Florida. 

Be  it  further  enacted  hy  the  Senate  and  Mouse  of  Bepresentatives  of  the  United  States  of 
America  in  Congress  assembled,  That,  from  and  after  the  passage  of  this  act,  all  the  public 
lands  in  the  States  of  Alabama,  Mississippi,  Louisiana,  Arkansas,  and  Florida,  shall  be  dis- 
posed of  according  to  the  stipulations  of  the  homestead  law  of  twentieth  May,  eighteen  hun- 
dred and  sixty-two,  entitled  "  An  Act  to  secure  homesteads  to  actual  settlers  on  the  public 
domain,"  and  the  act  supplemental  thereto,  approved  twenty-first  of  March,  eighteen  hundred 
and  sixty-four,  but  with  this  restrction,  that  until  the  expiration  of  two  years  from  and  after 
the  passage  of  this  act,  no  entry  shall  be  made  for  more  than  a  half  quarter  section,  or  eighty 
acres;  and  in  lieu  of  the  sum  of  ten  dollars  required  to  be  paid  by  tlie  second  section  of  said 
act,  there  shall  be  paid  the  sum  of  five  dollars  at  the  time  of  the  issue  of  each  patent ; 
and  that  the  public  land  in  said  States  shall  be  disposed  of  in  no  other  manner  after  the  passage 
of  this  act:  Provided,  That  no  distinction  or  discrimination  shall  be  made  in  the  construction 
or  execution  of  this  act  on  account  of  race  or  color:  And  provided  further,  that  no  mineral 
lands  shall  be  liable  to  entry  and  settlement  under  its  provisions. 

Sec.  2.  And  he  it  further  enacted.  That  section  second  of  the  above-cited  homestead  law, 
entitled  "  An  Act  to  secure  homesteads  to  actual  settlers  on  the  public  domain,"  approved  May 
twentieth,  eighteen  hundred  and  sixty-two,  be  so  amended  as  to  read  as  follows :  That  the 
person  applying  for  the  benefit  of  this  act  shall,  upon  application  to  the  register  of  the  land 
office  in  which  he  or  she  is  about  to  make  such  entry,  make  affidavit  before  the  said  register 
or  receiver  that  he  or  she  is  the  head  of  a  family,  or  is  twenty-one  years  or  more  of  age,  or 
shall  have  performed  service  in  the  army  or  navy  of  the  United  States,  and  that  such  appli- 
cation is  made  for  his  or  her  exclusive  use  and  benefit,  and  that  said  entry  is  made  for  the 
purpose  of  actual  settlement  and  cultivation,  and  not,  either  directly  or  indirectly,  for  the  use 
or  benefit  of  any  other  person  or  persons  whomsoever;  and  upon  filing  the  said  affidavit  with 
the  register  or  receiver,  and  on  payment  of  five  dollars,  when  the  entry  is  not  more  than 
eighty  acres,  he  or  she  shall  thereupon  be  permitted  to  enter  the  amount  of  land  specified : 
Provided  however.  That  no  certificate  shall  be  given  or  patent  issued  therefor  until  the  expira- 
tion of  five  years  from  the  date  of  such  entry ;  and  if,  at  the  expiration  of  such  time,  or  at 
any  time  within  two  years  thereafter,  the  person  making  such  entry,  or,  if  he  be  dead,  his 
widow,  or  in  case  of  her  death,  his  heirs  or  devisee,  or,  in  case  of  a  widow  making  such  entry, 
her  heirs  or  devisee,  in  case  of  her  death,  shall  prove  by  two  credible  witnesses  that  he,  she, 
or  they  have  resided  upon  or  cultivated  the  same  for  the  term  of  five  years  immediately  suc- 
ceeding tiie  time  of  filing  the  affidavit  aforesaid,  and  shall  make  affidavit  that  no  part  of  said 
land  has  been  alienated,  and  that  he  will  bear  true  allegiance  to  the  government  of  the  United 
States ;  then,  in  such  case,  he,  she,  or  they,  if  at  that  time  a  citizen  of  the  United  States,  shall 
be  entitled  to  a  patent,  as  in  other  cases  provided  by  law :  And  provided  further.  That  in  case 
of  the  death  of  both  father  and  mother,  leaving  an  infant  child  or  children  under  twenty-one 
years  of  age,  the  right  and  fee  shall  inure  to  the  benefit  of  said  infant  child  or  children;  and 


20  MANNER    OF    PEOCEEDING 


tlie  executor,  administrator,  or  guardian  may,  at  any  time  within  two  years  after  the  death  of 
the  surviving  parent,  and  in  accordance  with  the  laws  of  the  State  in  whicli  such  cliildren  for 
the  time  being  have  their  domicile,  sell  said  land  for  the  benefit  of  said  infants,  but  for  no 
other  purpose,  and  the  purchaser  shall  acquire  the  absolute  title  by  the  purchase,  aud  be  en- 
titled to  a  patent  from  the  United  States  on  the  payment  of  the  ofiice  fees  and  sum  of  money 
herein  specified:  Provided,  That  until  the  first  day  of  Januai-y,  eighteen  hundred  and  sixty- 
seven,  any  person  applying  for  the  benefit  of  this  act  shall,  in  addition  to  the  oath  hereinbe- 
fore required,  also  make  oath  that  he  has  not  borne  arms  against  the  United  States,  or  given 
aid  and  comfort  to  its  enemies. 

Sec.  3.  And  he  it  further  enacted,  That  all  the  provisions  of  the  aaid  homestead  law,  and 
the  act  amendatory  thereotj  approved  March  twenty-first,  eighteen  hundred  and  sixty -four, 
so  far  as  the  same  may  be  applicable,  except  so  far  as  the  same  are  modified  by  the  preceding 
sectioijs  of  this  act,  are  applied  to  and  made  part  of  this  act  as  fully  as  if  herein  enacted  and 
set  forth. 

Approved  June  21,  1866. 


TO  OBTAIN  TITLE  TO  PUBLIC  LANDS.  21 


(1.) 

$ Land  Office  at , ,18     . 

Mr. has  this  day  paid dollars,  the  Register's 

and  Receiver's  fees,  to  file  a  Declaratory  Statement,  the  receipt  whereof 
is  hereby  acknowledged. 

,  Heceiver. 

No. 


Mr. having  paid  the  fees,  has  this  day  filed  in  this 

office  his  Declaratory  Statement,  No. ,  for ,  section 

,   township ,  of  range ,   containing acres, 

settled  upon ,18     ,  being offered. 

,  Register. 


(2.) 

DECLARATORY   STATEMENT   FOR   CASES   WHERE  THE 
LAND  IS  NOT  SUBJECT  TO  PRIVATE  ENTRY. 

I ,  of ,  being  ,  have,  on  the day 

of ,  A.  D.  18     ,  settled  and  improved  the quarter  section 

number ,  in  township  number ,  of  range  number , 

in  the  district  of  lands  subject  to  sale  at  the  land  office  at ,  and 

containing acres,  which  land  has  not  yet  been  offered  at  pubhc 

sale,  and  thus  rendered  subject  to  private  entry ;  and  1  do  hereby  declare 
my  intention  to  claim  the  said  tract  of  land  as  a  pre-emption  right,  under 
the  provisions  of  said  Act  of  4th  September,  1841. 

Given  under  my  hand  this day  of ,  A.  D.  18     . 

In  presence  of . 


(3.) 

FOR  CASES  WHERE  THE  LAND  CLAIMED  SHALL  HAYE 
BEEN  RENDERED  SUBJECT  TO  PRIVATE  ENTRY  SINCE 
THE  DATE  OF  THE  LAW. 

I, ,  of ,  being ,  have,  since  the  first  day 

of ,  A.  D.  18     ,  settled  and  improved  the quarter  of  sec- 
tion number  ,  in  township  number  ,  of  range  number 

,  in  the  district  of  lands  subject  to  sale  at  the  land  office  at , 

and  containing acres,  which  land  has  been  rendered  subject  to 


22  MANNER    OF   PROCEEDING 


private  entry  since  the  passage  of  the  Act  of  4th  September,  1841,  but 
prior  to  my  settlement  thereon  ;  and  I  do  hereby  declare  my  intention  to 
claim  the  said  tract  of  land  as  a  preemption  right,  under  the  provisions 
of  said  Act  of  4tli  September,  1841. 

Given  under  my  hand  this day  of ,  A.  D.  18 


In  presence  of 


(4.) 
AFFIDAVIT  REQUIRED  OF  PRE-EMPTION  CLAIMANT. 

I, ,  claiming  the  right  of  pre-emption  under  the  pro- 
visions of  the  Act  of  Congress,  entitled  "  An  Act  to  appropriate  the  pro- 
ceeds of  the  sale  of  the  pubhc  lands,  and  to  grant  pre-emption  rights," 

approved  September  4,  1841,  to  the quarter  of  section  number 

-,  of  township  number ,  of  range  number ,  subject 

to  sale  at ,  do  solemnly that  I  have  never  had  the  benefit 

of  any  right  of  pre-emption  under  this  act ;  that  I  am  not  the  owner  of 
three  hundred  and  twenty  acres  of  land  in  any  State  or  Territory  of  the 
United  States,  nor  have  I  settled  upon  and  improved  said  land  to  sell  the 
same  on  speculation,  but  in  good  faith  to  appropriate  it  to  my  own  exclu- 
sive use  or  benefit ;  and  that  I  have  not,  directly  or  indirectly,  made 
any  agreement  or  contract,  in  any  way  or  manner,  with  any  person  or 
persons  whomsoever,  by  which  the  title  which  I  may  acquire  from  the 
government  of  the  United  States  should  inure,  in  whole  or  in  part,  to  the 
benefit  of  any  person  except  myself. 


I, ,  of  the  Land  Office  at ,  do  hereby  certify 

that  the  above  aflidavit  was  taken  and  subscribed  before  me,  this 

day  of ,  A.  D.  18       . 


(5.) 

We , ,  do  solemnly  swear  that 

, and  is  an  inhabitant  of  the quarter  of  section 

number  ,  of  township  number  ,  north  of  range  number 

— ,  and  that  no  other  person  resided  upon  the  said  land,  entitled  to 

the  right  of  pre-emption.     That  the  said ,  entered  upon 


TO  OBTAIN  TITLE  TO  PUBLIC  LANDS.  23 


and  made  a  settlement  in  person  on  the  said  land  since  the day  of 

,  18    ,  to  wit :  on  the day  of ,  18    ,  — and  has 

hved  in  the  said  house,  and  made  it  his  exclusive  home,  from  the 


day  of ;  18     ,  till  the  present  time.     That  he  did  not  remove  from 

his  own  land  within  the  State  of to  make  the  settlement  above 

referred  to ;  and   that   he  has  since  said  settlement  ploughed,  fenced, 

and  cultivated  about acres  of  said  land. 

I, ,  do  hereby  certify  that  the  above  affidavit  was  taken 

and  subscribed  before  me  this day  of ,  A.  D.  18     . 


We  certify  that , ,  whose  name  — 

subscribed  to  the  foregoing  affidavit, person  —  of  respectabihty. 

,  Register. 

,  Heceiver. 


(6.) 

HOMESTEAD. 

Application^ 
No. 5  Land  Office  at , ,  18     . 

I, ,  of ,  do  hereby  apply  to  enter,  under  the 

provisions  of  the  Act  of  Congress  approved  May  20,  1862,  entitled  "  An 
Act  to  secure  Homesteads  to  actual  settlers  on  the  pubhc  domain," 
the of  section ,  in  township ,  of  range ,  con- 
taining   •  acres. 


Land  Office  at , ,  18     . 

I, ,  Register  of  the  Land  Office,  do  hereby  certify  that 

the  above  apphcation  is  for  Surveyed  Lands  of  the  class  which  the  apph- 
cant  is  legally  entitled  to  enter  under  the  Homestead  Act  of  May  20, 
1862,  and  that  there  is  no  prior,  valid,  adverse  right  to  the  same. 

,  Register. 


HOMESTEAD. 


{Affidavit.)  Land  Office  at , 

{Date.) . 

I, ,  of ,  having  filed  my  Application  JVo. , 

for  an  entry  under  the  provisions  of  the  Act  of  Congress,  approved 
May  20,  1862,  entitled  "  An  Act  to  secure  Homesteads  to  actual  settlers 
on  the  pubhc  domain,"  do  solemnly  swear,  that  IHere  state  whethet-  the 


24  MANNER    OF   PROCEEDING 

applicant  is  the  head  of  a  family,  or  over  twenty-one  years  of  age  ; 
whether  a  citizen  of  the  United  States,  or  has  fled  his  declaration  of 
intention  of  becoming  such  ;  or,  if  under  twenty-one  years  of  age,  that 
he  has  served  not  less  than  fourteen  days  in  the  army  or  navy  of  the 

United  States  during  actual  war  ;  that  said  Application  No. is 

m,adefor  his  or  her  exclusive  benefit ;  and  that  said  entry  is  made  for 
the  purpose  of  actual  settlement  and  cultivation,  and  not,  directly  or 
indirectly,  for  the  use  or  benefit  of  any  other  person  or  persons  whom- 
soever^ and  that  I  have  not  heretofore  had  the  benefit  of  this  Act. 


Sworn  to  and  subscribed,  this day  of ,  before — 

\_Register  or  Meceiver'\  of  the  Land  Office. 


(8.) 

MILITAKY  OR  NAYAL  HOMESTEAD. 

Application  I 
No. i  Land  Office  at , ,  18     . 

I, J  of ,  being  in  the service  of  the  United 

States,  do  hereby  apply  to  enter,  under  the  provisions  of  the  Act  approved 
March  21, 1864,  amendatory  of  the  Homestead  Act  of  May  20, 1862,  and 
for  other  purposes,  a  certain  tract  of  land,  which is  hereby  author- 
ized to  designate  at  the  foot  of  this  application,  as  my  Homestead,  and 
which  I  agree  to  hold  as  my  own  selection. 


Attest : ,  Commanding  Officer  at 


I, ,  as  named  in  the  foregoing  Application  No. , 

do  designate  the  tract  selected  for  his  Homestead  as  the of  sec- 
tion   ,  in  township ,  of  range  ,  containing  

acres,  and  on  which  there  is  bona  fide  improvement  and  settlement,  and 
on  which  I  am  residing  and  in  charge  for  said  applicant. 

Witness  my  hand,  this day  of ,  18     . 


Attest : ,  Register. 


Land  Office  at •, ,  18     . 

I, ,  Register  of  the  Land  Office,  do  hereby  certify  that 

the  above  appHcatiou  is  for  Surveyed  Lands  of  the  class  which  the 
apphcant  is  legally  entitled  to  enter  under  the  Homestead  Act  of  May 
20,  1862,  and  that  there  is  no  prior,  vaHd,  adverse  right  to  the  same. 

,  Register. 


(9.) 
MILITARY  OR  NAVAL  HOMESTEAD. 

Amendatory  Homestead  Act  of  March  21,  1864. 
AirroAvrr. 
State  of ,  County  of 


{Date.) . 

I, ,  of ,  being  now  in  the  [rnilitary  or  naval 

service]  of  the  United  States,  and  proposing  to  file  my  application,  No. 

,  for  an  entry  under  the  provisions  of  the  Act  of  Congress  approved 

March  21,  1864,  amendatory  of  the -original  Homestead  Act  of  May  20, 
1862,  and  for  other  pm-poses,  do  solemnly  swear  that  [Here  state  whether 
applicant  is  the  head  of  a  family,  or  over  twenty-one  years  of  age  ; 
whether  a  citizen  of  the  United  States,  or  has  filed  his  declaration  of 
intention  of  becoming  such  ;  or,  if  under  twenty-one  years  of  age,  that 
he  has  served  not  less  than  fourteen  days  in  the  army  or  navy  of  the 

United  States  during  actual  war  ;  that  said  Application  JVb. is 

made  for  his  or  her  exclusive  benefit ;  and  that  said  entry  is  made  for 
the  purpose  of  actual  settlement  and  cultivation,  and  not,  directly  or 
indirectly,  for  the  use  or  benefit  of  any  other  person  or  persons  whom- 
soever^ and  that  I  have  not  heretofore  had  the  benefit  of  this  Act. 

I  further  swear  that  I  have  made  bona  fide  settlement  and  improve- 
ment upon  the  tract  which  \here  give  name  of  representative]  is  author- 
ized to  designate  as  my  Homestead. 


Sworn  to  and  subscribed,  this day  of ,  before 

,  U.  S.  Commanding  Officer  of ,  at . 


[Hank  and  service.] 


26  MANNER    OF   PROCEEDING 

(10.) 

AFFIDAVIT— INDIAN  HOMESTEAD  OK  PEE-EMPTION. 

I, ,  formerly  of  the tribe  of  Indians,  do  solemn- 
ly swear  that  I  have  voluntarily  dissolved  all  connection  with  that  tribe, 
and  that  it  is  bona  fide  my  intention  to  forego  all  claim  to  or  share  in 
any  of  its  annuities  or  benefits,  and  in  good  faith  to  perform  the  duties 
of  a  citizen  of  the  United  States. 


(11.) 

AFFIDAVIT  IN  SUPPOKT  OF  INDIAN  HOMESTEAD 
OH  PRE-EMPTION. 

, ,  do  solemnly  swear  that  to  the  best 

of knowledge  and  belief ,  formerly  of  the 


tribe  of  Indians,  has  dissolved  all  connection  with  said  tribe,  and  does 
not  claim  or  share  any  of  the  annuities  or  ^benefits  inuring  to  said  tribe 
of  Indians  by  treaty  or  otherwise,  but  is  performing  aU  such  duties  as 
pertain  to  a  citizen  of  the  United  States. 


Witness : .  

Sworn  and  subscribed  to  before  me  this day  of ,  18 


(12.) 
AFFIDAVIT. 

Land  Office  at 


{Date) 


I, of ,  having  filed  my  application  No. for 

an  entry  under  the  provisions  of  the  Act  of  Congress  approved  May  20, 
1862,  and  desiring  to  avail  myself  of  the  25th  section  of  the  Act  of  July 
15,  1870,  in  regard  to  land  held  at  the  double  minimum  price  of  $2  50 

per  acre,  do  solemnly  swear  that  I  am  the  identical who 

was  a in  the  company  *  commanded  by  captain , 


*  Where  the  party  was  a  regimental  or  staff  officer,  or  was  in  a  different  branch  of  the  service, 
the  aifidavit  must  be  varied  in  form  according  to  the  facts  of  the  case. 


TO    OBTAIN    TITLE    TO   PUBLIC    LANDS.  27 


in  the regiment  of ,  commanded  by  ■ 


in  the  war  of  1861 ;  that  I  continued  in  actual  service  for  ninety  days, 

and  have  remained  loyal  to  the  government;  that  said  application  No. 

is  made  for  my  exclusive  benefit,  and  for  the  purpose  of  actual  settlement 
and  cultivation,  and  not,  directly  or  indirectly,  for  the  use  or  benefit  of  any 
other  person  or  persons,  and  that  I  have  not  heretofore  had  the  benefit 
of  tlie  Homestead  Law. 

Sworn  to  and  subscribed  before  me  this day  of . 


{Register  or  Meceiver  of  the  Land  Office.) 


UNITED  STATES  LAND  OFFICES. 


OHIO. 
Chillicothe. 

INDIANA. 
Indianapolis. 

ILLINOIS. 
Springfield. 

MISSOUEI. 

Booneville, 

Ironton, 

Springfield. 

ALABAMA. 

Mobile, 

Huntsville, 

Montgomery. 

MISSISSIPPI. 

Jackson. 

LOUISIANA. 

New  Orleans, 

Monroe, 

Natchitoches. 

MICHIGAN. 

Detroit, 
East  Saginaw, 
Ionia, 
Marquette, 
Traverse  City. 

ARKANSAS. 

Little  Itock, 
Washington, 
Clarksville. 

FLORIDA. 

Tallahassee. 


IOWA. 

Fort  Des  Moines, 
Council  Bhifis, 
Fort  Dodge, 
Sioux  City. 

WISCONSIN. 

Menasha, 

Falls  of  St.  Croix, 

Stevens  Point, 

La  Crosse, 

Bayfield, 

Eau  Claire. 

CALIFORNIA. 

San  Francisco, 

Marysville, 

Humboldt, 

Stockton, 

Visalia, 

Sacramento, 

Los  Angeles. 

NEVADA. 

Carson  City, 
Austin, 
Belmont, 
Aurora. 

WASHINGTON  T. 

Olympia, 
Vancouver. 

MINNESOTA. 

Taylor's  Falls, 
St.  Cloud, 
Du  Luth, 
Alexandria, 
Jackson, 
New  Ulm, 
Litclifield. 


OREGON. 

Oregon  City, 
Roseburg, 
Le  Grand. 

KANSAS. 

Topeka, 
Junction  City, 
Humboldt, 
Auo-usta. 


NEBRASKA. 

West  Point, 
Beatrice, 
Lincoln, 
Dakota  City, 
Grand  Island. 

NEW  MEXICO  T. 

Santa  Fe. 

DAKOTA  T. 

Vermillion, 
Springfield, 
Pembina. 

COLORADO  T. 

Denver  City, 
Fair  Play, 
Centra]  City. 

IDAHO  T. 

Boise  City, 
Lewiston. 

MONTANA  T. 

Helena. 

ARIZONA  T. 

Prescott. 

UTAH  T. 

Salt  Lake  City. 


